In Custody Death

Earlier this evening, as Chief of Police Troy Riggs pointed out in a press conference, Officers responded to a scene to restore order in our Community. Unfortunately, as a result of the situation, a tragedy occurred. The tragedy is felt by the family of an individual who lost his life as well as the Corpus Christi Police Officers involved in the incident. The following is an account of that incident.

On 9/11/11, at 4:41 PM, Corpus Christi Police Officers responded to a Disturbance call at the Waterford Apartments. Numerous calls reporting the disturbance came into the Dispatch Center between 4:41 PM and 4:51 PM.

Two CCPD Officers arrived at the scene at 4:48 PM. As the Officers were investigating the disturbance, they contacted a 32 year old male. After contacting this individual, he charged the Officers and a scuffle began. The suspect was able to break free and ran down the stairs of the apartment, jumped a wooden railing, and fled on foot.

Officers chased the suspect and caught him a short distance away, still in the apartment complex. Upon catching the individual, another struggle began as back-up Officers arrived to assist. As Officers attempted to arrest the combative suspect, a conductive energy device (“Taser”) was deployed in addition to OC (“Pepper”) Spray. Both of these tools had little to no effect on the suspect.

At 5:02 PM, the Officers were finally able to handcuff the suspect. Shortly thereafter, the suspect collapsed. Officers immediately called for a Medic unit. At 5:06, a Medic Unit from the Corpus Christi Fire Department arrived at the scene and subsequently transported the suspect to Doctor’s Regional Hospital where he expired.

Two investigations, which have already started, will take place over the coming days. One of these investigations will be handled by the CCPD Criminal Investigation Division. Witnesses, Officers, and anyone else involved in this incident will be interviewed, and the evidence will be gathered and examined thoroughly. When the investigation is complete, it will be delivered to District Attorney Mark Skurka. After the case is given to the District Attorney’s Office, it will be presented to the Nueces County Grand Jury. The Grand Jury will review the case in its entirety and determine whether charges will be filed.

The second investigation will be an Administrative investigation handled by the Internal Affairs Division. This investigation will focus on three things; Policies, Procedures, and Training in the Corpus Christi Police Department. The investigation will determine if those three items were followed appropriately during the incident.

Also included in this second Administrative investigation, is the required documentation which will be submitted to the Texas Attorney General’s Office. This is mandatory in all “In Custody Deaths” occurring in Texas, as documented in the Texas Code of Criminal Procedures Article 49.18. This documentation must be delivered to the Attorney General within 30 days.

As is standard in this type of incident, the four Officers who were involved have been placed on Administrative Leave. The CCPD PIO Office will update the Community when additional information becomes available.

CCPD Blotter Disclaimer:

Corpus Christi Police officers respond to hundreds of events every day. The information you see in the CCPD Blotter is just a sampling. Information is subject to change as case investigation proceeds. Individuals arrested on the basis of probable cause have not been charged.

Additional information regarding each posting may be obtained by reviewing associated police reports in their entirety. For instructions on how to obtain a police report, please visit http://www.cctexas.com/police

For more information about the Corpus Christi Police Department, please visit our homepage at http://www.cctexas.com/police

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CCPD Blotter Disclaimer:

Corpus Christi Police officers respond to hundreds of events every day. The information you see in the CCPD Blotter is just a sampling. Information is subject to change as case investigation proceeds. Individuals arrested on the basis of probable cause have not been charged.

Additional information regarding each posting may be obtained by reviewing associated police reports in their entirety. For instructions on how to obtain a police report, please visit http://www.cctexas.com/police

For more information about the Corpus Christi Police Department, please visit our homepage at http://www.cctexas.com/police